₦airaland Forum

harakiri:
When i saw this thread, i thought the car being talked about was a Chevy Corvette or Maseratti Quattro BUT an audi? Of all cars? How can you say Audi parts aren't available? Furthermore, anyone using great cars like BMW,Audi,Bentleys etc should know better when choosing their auto-mechanics. How can you take a car that is totally computerized and give to a mechanic who can't read simple instruction manuals?

I dey laugh o! Abeg, tell dem! Mcheww!

Instruction manual keh! You dey go far sef! Ask that mechanic the name of the part he claimed he had searched in the whole world without finding. Believe you me, he wont know. In fact, i dey go far sef! Ask that mechanic to show you or point at injectors on that engine. Its so obvious that he would point at something else, maybe the throttle body. Clowns!

Ikenna.

Alert:
Depends on what pls, ikenna

Hey! Sorry for late reply. You know. Work!

Anyway, back to "depends". To start, i don't have or own a Toyota. But I know of a Toyota Mechanic that is very very good with Toyotas, especially their V6s. But i dislike his method. He wouldnt tell you, the car owner, what he diagnosed to be the culprit of the car's "misbehaving". Even though he fixes issues with Toyotas, no matter the problem( at least the ones i know of), but i hate that part of him (not disclosing what he did to bring the car back to life). So, it depends if you are ok with that.

Also, it depends if you would be ok with "clowns" at APO village. Some of them are good, but 99% of them are still clowns. You will understand if you have encountered them.

Well, I fix my car myself. Not because i cant afford to give them to fix for me or because i have the whole time in the world to do so, but because am trying to prevent another NIGHTMARE they put me through early this year. THE FEAR OF AUTO MECHANICS & REWIRES IN ABUJA IS THE BEGINING OF WISDOM! Bear that in mind.

Did i get you confused?

Ikenna.

oblo:
Sure tin bro, I have felt a v6 before but not enough to really appreciate it. I don dey eye 2004 acura tl, that car try no be small, e smooth die!!!

Now that i have two V6s, na so te joly-joly i dey do each time i dey drive

The first time i drove my first V6, I came out of the car giggling like a girl

One thing about V6, the non-V6 people fail to understand is that its not just about the power, torque or fast acceleration alone, but the engine sound note. The way V6 engine dey sound as the acceleration dey increase dey make me happy pass Obama Honestly, its a wonderful world

Ikenna

That depends!

Ikenna.

oblo:
My Humble max in my 1997 nissan almera hatchback was a modest 180km on lagos- ibadan expressway. My next car will definately be a v6 . I don tire to dey drive i4 engine joo,

I feel you bro! E don teh wey i run comot from the I4 engine world. You would realise how much you have missed so much as soon as you enter the V6 world.

Ikenna.

@ poster,

What made you think that the Audi quack mechanic was right; that the part he said was faulty and couldnt find a replacement, was actually what is faulty?

People! We are talking about Audi here that uses mostly BOSCH for their parts. Bosch, the most commonest parts in the auto world. Yet, someone is telling me he couldnt find the part. What a joke! Trust me, i believe thepart in question is electrical component. After all, how could he diagnose and detect the actual issue with the car when he may not know the name of the part.

The fact is that i dont believe that the car cant be fixed because the suspected part faulty cant be found.

Ikenna.

I I had opened my ears for mechanics & some I TOO KNOW people, I wouldnt have have a car that am enjoying now, blessing the day i made the decision to buy that car. Sometimes, a man has to take a decision & deal with it. Who told you that those Japanese cars dont have their own peculiar issues too? Ask some people here some issues their so called reliable Toyotas have been giving them & how mechanics help in alleviating the issues. Like someone earlier posted, if you no wan cable the car, bring am come my side, i go cable am for you well well. Mchewww!

If VW golf can drive so nice better than Toyota Camry I4, then Audi whatever will be a damn good car.

What exactly do you want that is different from other cars, on how to maintain a car & keep it on the road as long as it takes?

Ikenna.

If one critically look at the situation, one will realise that we brought the nightmares that await us in 2012 upon ourselves. Why? When in your right senses, you voted for that your Preident in, what then were you expecting different from what he is giving back to you now? We all have ourselves to blame, even though i did not cast any vote, neither did i have voters card in the first place.

For those of us in Abuja, they imposed "car coder" on us, claiming that it does the same function they are now claiming the new plate would do. Are they now trying to tell us that the car corder thing was just a lie, after extorting 3k each from every motorist in Abuja? Why cant they get info they need to create a database from Licensing offices when people go to renew their Vehicle licences & drivers Licence? Unfortunatly, your President was even the one that went & launched the new nightmare! Clown!

Why must it be the poor masses that will pay for the security "HE" failed to provide, since they claimed the new nightmare is to ensure security in the country? Why must it be January of all January, when people will be struggling to manage till month end, that HE intends to kick off his second nightmare: Removal of Oil/fuel subsidy? Even if he thinks he has good reason for fuel subsidy removal, why must it start from January? Mind you, not everyone that travel home for Xmas next month, will afford to travel back in 1st wk of January. Because you know why? All the filing stations will buy fuel at current rate & hoard them toward the end of December 2011, expecting the new fuel price to start 1st week of January 2012 so that they will sell at new price & make tripple gain. If HE has lived in Nigeria for long & felt what majority of Nigerians go through before he found himself in ASO Rock, he would have known thats what he was about to befall on people that lost their loved ones who went out to vote him into that office with their lives.

Ikenna.

@ ambyzown,

And what about them? Yes they are poweful cars, with modern electronic components that ensures good road handling of such cars at great or hi speed. And pleasurable to drive. Yes, performance cars, they might be too. But does that stop the 505 V6 from being one too? Was it because it a late '90s production? Car enthusiast dont judge cars by mere look or how modern they might be, but how they perform when geared into action. I can only comment on a car i have driven. The technology might be outdated, but it still remain what it is. At least, not many modern cars performs as good as the good as the car does. Most modern Performance cars need to be hard accelerated before they will perform. But this car is different. Its a short stroke V6 engine. The car shoots out like rocket at slight touch on the throttle pedal (low rpm). Find out the difference for us between short stroke & long stroke engine and get back to us. Tell us which one produces high engine torque at a very low rpm.

Its a performance car not just because its V6, but the road handling. Test drive one and judge!

Ikenna.

Another problem again Our highways are deathtrap, but not as you think. Let me describe Nigeria hiway to you.

You set out for a 10 hrs long distance drive. For 10 mins, 20, 30 mins or even 1 hr, you might not see any pothole. Or they might be small enough for you to steer away from & still maintain the same speed. But sometimes, while trying to overtake a long truck, blocking your view with thick black smoke from it exhaust, all of a sudden, halve way passing the truck, there a big hole you didnt see before you put head to overtake. Would you push off the truck so that you dont jump the pothole or would you prefer to remain behind the truck for hrs because you dont want to jump any pothole on speed when you still have another 9hrs drive to do? And mind you, you need to accelerate & overtake quickly before a coming vehicle reaches you (which is where a quick accelerating car becomes an advantage). So my brother, our high ways are not full of potholes the way those outside think. You wont say because you might jam a porthole after an hour of not meeting any pothole & you then decide to speed 50 kph. Pls, this is highway we are talking about. We are talking about passing through so many states, running on uninhabited dangerous road, likely full with armed robbers waiting for unfortunate vehicles to attack. We are talking about a driver who has to speed to keep himself alert from sleeping on the wheels. We are talking of roads where some part of states are unsafe to pass on at certain hrs of the evening or night. Pls, highway is not for the faint hearted. Whoever that is hitting a Nigeria high way is fully prepared of eventualities. Either you run slow and be left behind & deal with what you meet on the road alone or you you try to catch up. Of course, we speed sensibly on our highways. People that claimed to speed up to 200kph donot mean that they constantly were speeding that throughout the hrs of their journey. They would must have only tried that on a long straigth road they knew had no pothole.Mind you, the major cause of accidents on our high ways are not necessary because of speed, but reckless overtaking, inexperience driving (not experience enough to control a car at speed when tire burst occurs), not knowing how to negotiate a sharp bend ,etc. In fact, do you think that its every Nigerian that knows that not all tyres are speed rated? Do you think its every Nigerian car owner that knows how to check for tire production date when purchasing a tire? Some foolishly cause accidents themselves by buying inferior new tyres & speed with them, even the expired & used tyres. How many people in Nigeria do you think that really know how to drive? Very few. People buy auto trans cars, jump in and start driving for the first time. The next day, they will hit the high way & end up causing accidents for themselves & sometimes for others too. For me, I stay more alert on highway when am speeding. It prevents me from feeling sleepy on the wheels.

I can go on & on. If not for anything, i will never forget how my 505 V6 saved me from being under the 6ft,  which happened along Onitsha-Enugu expressway last two months, October. If it was to be other ordinally cars  i have used before i got this, i wouldnt have been existing by now. No one would understand except myself, alone in the car, when the incident happened. Ever been pushed out of the road by an on coming vehicle, on your own lane? That was the day i experienced the work of a performance car: to save life! I used to to think they were mainly produced for speed. I lived today to tell the story for the choice i made late last year when i purchased the car. Even with what happened, the car had no scratch after the incident, except that one of front tyre, a brand new tire, bursted when the ordeal happened. See, whether you decide to speed on high way or not, if accident happens, it can come where you are crawling and end your life right there. That was what happened the day. But God, coupled with experience i have in handling such situation & with a predictable car, made it possible to live and will continue to do anything possible to have & use a performance car on NIGERIA highway.

Our highways are not that bad truely speaking. They are just highways, not for the faint-hearted.

Ikenna.

My points are:


1. Nigeria highways are deathtraps. Unsafe to speed.

2. Any car can speed on our highways, if the driver has the liver.

3. But some cars are safer to speed with on Nigeria highways, if the need arises or if the driver is in the mood.

Ikenna.

@ KOMBE

Read from the begining of these thread. Every info you need to fix the Injection issue with your car has been discussed here. Goodluck.

Ikenna.

Siena, you still dont get it. We are not talking about race track or smooth road with corners here. We are talking about Nigeria high ways here. Do you know what will happen to a light weight small car like KIA Picanto with 13" wheel when that wheel enter a big pothole at 180 kph? Some of the pothole on highways here are big enough to consume 13" wheel. Considering a light weight small car, its mortuary straight! Siena, you may not understand since you dont ply on the death traps here called Nigeria high ways!

To safely speed on Nigeria highway, the car need to have enoght weight & more importantly, a matched car. I know about small sized cars that handles very well, more than some big sized cars on high speed, like Peugeot 205 that had set world record. But its a different thing entirely here.

I have driven a lot I4 cars on high ways here. I know terrible encouters i had with some of them, when trying to push them hard. Yes, they can speed, but lack certain handling qualities performance cars are equiped with. Recently, I purchased a Peugeot 605 V6 5-peed manual. The car has an electronic damper/shock absorber. Once the car gets to a certain speed, the damper will automatically switch to sport mode, to help balance the car at high speed. Unfortunately, none of the I4 605 has that electronic damper, except the Turbo model, i believe, which i also consider as a speed car. Yes, modern 14 cars has improved. But the truth remains, not all components installed in V6 or V8 cars to help the car with spped that their I4s get.

Now, would one compare the handling of Toyota Camry 2.2 (I4) with Lexus on Nigeria Highway? Would one compare the handling of Benz S-600 with Toyota Corolla on Nigeria highway, both at high speed? We all know what will happen to both if they jump the same big pothole at the same speed on Nigeria "good & safe" high ways. Nothing might happen to Collora, but the car the driver, at 180 kph,  would really feel the impact, the car wont lose control. But would Benz S- 600 noticed that anything happened at the same speed? I leave you guys to answer that.

Ikenna.

Siena:
Much as I'm a fan of V6 / V8 engines, I would disagree with you. 170 km/h is a mere 105 mph. A 1,6 I4 with 90 bhp will achieve 105 mph without breaking into a sweat. It's not how many cylinders an engine has, but how much power and torque it makes.

An Audi A4 B6 1,6 I4 makes 100 bhp, and maximum speed is 117 mph (190 km/h)
An Audi A4 B6 1,8T I4 Sport makes 190 bhp, and maximum speed is 147 mph (238 km/h)

A Kia Picanto 1,25 I4 (2011) makes 84 bhp, and maximum speed is 106 mph (172 km/h)

A Ford Sierra RS Cosworth 2,0 16V turbo makes 220 bhp, and maximum speed is 152 mph (247 km/h)

All the above are just examples of the relationship between engine output versus aerodynamics versus gearing. It has little to do with how many cylinders they have. A glaring example is the 1998 Audi A8 3,7 V8 32 Quattro. It makes 235 bhp, but has a maximum speed of 153 mph (248 km/h). Making it only 1 mile better at its maximum speed than a 1987 Ford Sierra RS Cosworth (I4), despite the Audi A8's obvious aerodynamic advantage.

We're biased towards our own cars, but c'mon! There are lots of I4 engines that would give V6 / V8 engines a run for their money.

Siena, you got it wrong. If you read the post properly, you would understand that i wasnt emphasing on the speed, but a matching car for a high speed.

Like i noted in the earlier post, a KIA Picanto can speed upto 170kph. Yes, likewise Toyota Yaris. But are you now telling me that the body or size of such cars match such speeds? You think they can handle it? So just because a car instrument cluster shows 240 km/h, means that its safe to speed the car in question at such speed and still manuaever eventualities at such speeds?

Ikenna.

Go through the link or read the thread below, you will get all you need to fix the issue.

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-797769.0.html

Goodluck.

Ikenna.

For the faint-hearted here and non car enthusiasts here. This is for you.

There is a difference between a performance car and just a car. High speed are not mearnt for all cars. A person driving an I4 car at 170kph is risking his life and risking destroying the car . A performance car has an engine designed for high speed, together with the body structure and other mechanicals of the car. A performance car's suspension, strut/shock absorber, cross bar, trailing arms,etc are all different from ordinally cars. They are designed to stabilize or balance the car at a very high speed. Not every cars can maintain its balance when it hits or jumps pothole at high speed. Experience of highway driving also comes into play. Just because you bought a car and started driving, doesnt mean that you are experienced enough to speed on high way. Its not about speed. Every car can speed upto 170 kph. But the driver of the car at high speed and how to deal with potholes at such speed is a different ball game. How many people are experienced enough in driving to know that at certain hi speed, one should not steer away from pothole, rather jump it (which a performance car has advantage over ordinally car)? How many are experienced enough to know the distance or gap one should give a car in his front before he overtakes (to be able to see clearly and not fall into the same pothole the car infront falls into)? How many know what to do before one negotiates a sharp bend at hi speed? How many experienced enough to know the speed limit the tyre on their cars can take? etc.

When i bought my Peugeot 505 V6 5-speed manual, people called me nuts. No one could understand why i bought such a car in this generation. I never bothered to explain to anyone my reasons for my choice in choosing such a Lion. First, its a performance car. Its RWD (Rear Wheel Drive). Its V6. And the ultimate is that is a V6 with manual transmission. It was designed for high speed, for high way. It has a very low clearance, with 15" Alloy wheels. The V6 engine in the front gives the car front heavy weight. The RWD also makes the car to have weight at the rear when at top speed. Therefore, when at top speed with the car, the heavy V6 engine in the front and RWD configuration gives the car front-rear even weight distribution when at high speed. Every mechanical in 505 V6 front is different from other 505 models, to match the car with the power the V6 engine produces. The car is very very predictable on hi speed. It has never lost control no matter how deep a pothole is when the car is on hi speed. I got to Lokoja from Abuja with the car less than 2 hrs, nothwithsatding how terrible the road was and still is. Those of us that lives in Abuja will understand what am talking about. To cut the story short, i wasnt looking for city car to buy when i bought the car. I was after a long distance car, super performance car that matched our terrible Nigeria high ways. The 505 V6, with 5-speed manual, matched that profile, what i needed.

I have done speed high enough not to mention here with that car. If you have been to Abuja, you would know how good, free and wide most of the Abuja city roads are. Am a speed type. Which was why i bought a performance car to take care of that. I speed, but only when am alone in the car, which am always alone. If you are not experienced enough to speed on Nigeria high ways, with a matching car, leave it for us!

Ikenna.

I finally get to meet the poster, one on one, this afternoon. What a cool fellow! We spoke on the phone this morning, only for me to realise that my office is behind his at Zone 1. What a small world! From what i gathered from his explanation when we met, he has been able to get 95% issues with his car sorted out. I was impressed. Being man enough to deal with a problem or challenge can be very inspiring. I like such spirit.

Since the car stalled when the AFM (Air flow meter) plug was pulled out, the AFM should then be ok. If you hadnt noticed any change when the AFM plug was pulled out, then i would have suggested you swap the AFM with another and see if any change.

The CTS (Coolant Tempreature Sensor) should be located on one of the Cylinder heads, probably, close to water pump. The best way to test it is with Multimeter. You will need to check the resistance of the sensor with the Multimeter. Every sensor reading differs. You will have to find out from the workshop manual, if you have one, what your car model CTS should read. Normally, when you start the engine cold, it should read very low. But as the engine temperature rises (after about 10 mins of idling), the CTS should read high. Another way to test the working of the CTS is by starting the engine and allowing it to idle for 10 mins or the engine temp rises to operating temp. Then unplug the CTS wiring connector. As soon as its unpluged, the engine sound will change and will be hunting (revving high & low). It will go back to normal idle sound as soon as its plugged back. Its sounding low & high means that the ECU is no longer getting signal from the sensor, thereby it will start guessing, making injectors to inject excess fuel into the cylinders. But if you donot notice any change when you unplug the CTS while the engine is running, then the CTS is faulty. Goodluck.

Ikenna.

@ Mallamholly.

Start from the begining of this thread. You will get all the info you need to fix the problem.

@ allancruise,

If you also start from the begining, you will see how i got all the manuals i have for my car, 505 V6. You will need to google & sign up with online forums of your car model. Toyota Camry has many online communities (English), likewise Toyota as a brand, Honda or Honda Accord, CRV, BMW, Chevvy, etc. You can seek for whatever manual you need from the fellow members who must have gotten it either from ebay or from a free site. Apart from the manual thing, you will also learn a lot from such sites more than here? Why? Because its specifically about the car brand or model that you drive. On those sites, they treat all sort of problems with the car models in their discussion section. People that have issues with their cars will bring out the problem. Others with similar experiences & how best they resolved such problems will be suggested to fellow members that needed the help. There too, you will find out that those whitemen you think are rich enough not to touch a spanner, fix their cars themselves. Its even a hobby to some. But here, we feel too big to think of such, but make out time to be frustrated by the clowns we entrusted our vehicles on. In those forums, they are better organised. They all have separate sections like sections for car sales, adverts & discussion. If one wants or need to look for a car to buy, he would know the section to go to. Unlike here, where everything is Jaga-Jaga. Its really quite discouraging to enter this site. Its not all the time that one have the patience to scroll through for minutes looking for a discussion like this to contribute or learn something new. So disorganised! Anyway, someone mentioned that Seal777 or so has a Camry service manual. But you will need to look for a particular model of yours. They differ, even though they might be similar in design, especially the wiring diagram.

For those that drive French cars here (Peugeot & Renault), you can join or sign up with Australian French car forum : www.aussiefrogs.com. There is no help you wont get there in keeping your French car on the road, no matter the model.

Ikenna.

@ Bluediva,

I feel you. There is nothing like brand new car. At least, for a piece of mind for a while, before the "rouges" will start to frustrate your life. You called them rogues and quacks. Well, you are not far from the truth. But do you know what i call them? . Bunch of clowns! Why? Because the way they go about beating about the bush in engine bay or suggesting a replacement or diagnosing an unrelated thing to an issue a car is having, can be very funny at times. Most of them dont even know what injectors look like. I once opened my car bonnet then for one mechanic. He said my injectors would need servicing & was pointing at throttle body/unit. I was bafled. I asked him to show me what he called injector, to be sure of what i saw him did before & he pointed at the throttle body again and called it "an injector". Hm! I now pointed at the six injectors on the engine and asked him what were those, he said they were nozzles. I quickly slammed my bonnet & drove off as i quickly as i could. Clown!

Like i noted in my earlier post, the problem with your headlight is high resistance, I believe. Look for the headlight ground wire (negative wire to the headlight bulb), sand paper the surface and put it back, it will fix it. The wire should be grounded/attached to the body somewhere close to the headlight.

Pulling down the dashboard may not be the issue, but fixing it back correctly and plugging back all the wiring connectors or plugs to all the switches on the dashboard correctly is my main concern. Not many of those clowns can do such an intelligent/careful work.

Ikenna.

@ BlueDiva,

Every car brand has a peculiar issue known for. Hondas are known for auto gear issues & front swivel/ball joint failure issues. So its everyother brand. Peugeot, on the other hand, is known for electrical issues. The problem mostly are the harness connectors/plugs & poor fixed ground wires. Their wiring connectors/plugs are not water proofed. The pins inside the plugs easily get rusted. Also the ground wires easily get losed or contacts. Cleaning the harness once in a while helps to fix the electrical issues or prevent them from happening. At least, if you can get to the wiring connectors, pull out the female connector from the male connector, clean them with electrical cleaning fluid if you can & reconnect them. The warning bulb on the instructment cluster should go off or would clear whatever the problem is. Or you can pull and separate them, push them back in & repeat that 3 times. It will scrap off the rust, preventing the proper contact of the pins.

About the A/C gas leak, the possible place of leak are the condenser and the evaporator. Leak on condensor can easily be found and fixed. But if its the evaporator, am afraid, it would be a nightmare!. Why? Because, to get to evaporator, the dashboard has to come down. And trust me, you do not want to go there! it aint an easy job.

Ikenna.

omega25red:
poster

black smoke for me means oil burn. you need to change your engine oil. Before that get an engine flush if available in your area and also your catalytic converter might be bad.

That car need a major tune up hurry before your engine locks up.

Since when did black smoke becomes a sign of oil burn, for crying out loud? Please, there is no room for guess work when it comes to diagnosing & fixing vehicles. If you are not sure of what you are about to do or say, research on it. Car is Science and should be handled as such. Google color of smoke from exhaust.

Ikenna.

yomz1e:
Hi,.
1st what colour is the smoke, if its blue greyish, you flooded engine with oil, if its black smoke , your engine is 4ked. i am a bit dissappointed on what you said that you dont care what smoke your car produces, do you know with that kind of attitude is whats killing us in Africa (pollution), we dont give 2 4ks about our environment or mother nature as long as i get your own creature comfort. I suggest you get the engine changed or rebuilt better still scrap the 4ked up car.

No two ways about it, black smoke, high fuel consumption, idling and erractic speed means dead engine. In the UK, you dare not stick the car on the road if you still value your license and i would imagine its the same for US. How does Nigerians can adopt this mentality of caring for our environment.

[quote author=aloy@emeka link=topic=797769.msg9505581#msg9505581 date=1320752522]Stop killing our ozone layer with that junk. Please try and dispose the junk properly because the catalytic converter is obviously bad ; look for a junk yard that can effectively crush that vehicle with minimal emission and go buy yourself a newer vehicle. No wonder Nigeria is very hot.[/quote]Pls, you two should take this thread seriously. Some people are here to learn, which should be the aim of the section of this forum.

Blue smoke means oil burn in combustion chambers. While Black smoke means excessive fuel ( excess fuel in combustion chambers). Its only the blue smoke color that should be worrisome. Because the the only way to rectify the problem is engine rebuild or replacement. But black smoke has nothing to do with the engine, no matter how thick or dark black the color of the smoke is. Its an electrical issue.

Ikenna.

[quote author=ba_aliyah link=topic=797769.msg9500752#msg9500752 date=1320690088]@ Ikenna,
Thank you my brother i will get in touch with you soon. I actually changed my oil by myself the car has been some how sluggish before that the oil change. I thought there would be a better performance after the oil change.

You know what happened today, i warmed the car in the morning for about 5-8 minutes in preparation to visit a brother in Karu and another one in Kuje. Before i got to AYA at Asokoro, the car started to respond like the first time i drove it, on my way to Kuje, you cant believe the performance i got to 160-170 and it could do more.

I will still get the sensor fixed and check vacuum hoses as well as the Air Mass Meter.

Pls, could it be that i need to warm it for some minutes every morning, you know on a working day, most people like me just jump into the car and drive off.[/quote]I bought my 505 V6 as tokunbo which arrived January this year. People around were calling me nuts for purchasing a 505 in this era. But I knew what i wanted and why i wanted it. I bought it for 800k. When the car first arrived., it had severe injection issue. It was emiting thick black smoke from the exhaust. I requested  for a 505 V6 5-speed manual, instead i got a convert (originally I4 converted to V6). Because i desperately wanted  a V6 model of 505, i decided not to reject it (knowing how long and what it took me to get such a rare car in immaculate condition, except the butchered electrics). I took the car to APO mechanic village here in Abuja to get it fixed at all cost. Nearlly all Peugeot and Renault mechanics mechanics wasted my money on the car; none of them had a clue on what was wrong with the engine, they were just doing trying and error,  worsening the condition of the engine. I took the car to Peugeot outlet/Dealership (ASD motors) at Area 10, Garki Abuja. They couldnt help. With someone recommendation, i took the car to the so called best Rewire in Abuja, since the issue was Electrical. I dropped the car with him and left for work at early hour in the morning. I  went back in the evening to pick the car and met/was faced with the greatest frustration that ever happened in my life. The car i drove to the place, could no longer start.  Whatever the guy did in that engine bay, only God knows till today. To cut the  story short, the car slept in his workshop for 5 days, no longer starting. I spent 20k on the 5th day to replace all the electrical components he burnt that was making the car no longer starting. They were: the MAF (Mass Airflow sensor), the Amplifier module and Ignition coil. All these were happening because i was too scared to do job myself, and also i was listening to peoples advice to give the car to "competent"mechanics and rewires to fix for me. I decided enough was enough. Before then, I had help with online friends that own 505 in USA, especially the turbo and V6 models. One of the 505 V6 owners in USA took the pain, scanned his workshop manual, uploaded it and forwarded it to me via email. Another 505 owner in USA linked me to a web site where i found all workshop manuals of different 505 models. I downloaded the V6 model workshop manual, both with the wiring diagram.  With the encouragement & guild  from Siena and some other online friends 505 owners in Australia, i went into work one Saturday morning. I exposed the engine harness(all wires in the engine bay) leading to the two ECUs ( Injection and Ignition ECUs). I studied the wiring diagram, traced all the wires from the 2 ECUs to the sensors on the engine and saw what was all along the fault. The people that did the engine swap did good job but fail to connect the wires/engine harness correctly. It was wrongly connected. Almost all the sensors were wrongly connected. I then reverse all the wrong connections on the sensors, testing the sensors with my Multimeter to ensure that they still read what the workshop manual showed they should read. While I was doing that, i realised thet 4 sensors were missing in the engine bay. Oxygen sensor was one of them. So, it dawn on me that the sensors swapped during the powertrain conversion was not complete. Meaning that the engine would never run 100% until it gets it full sensors. Anyway, i continued with the work till around 9pm day that  Saturday night when i finished reversing/ correcting the connections. I started the car and WOORAH! The problems were gone. The engine was running smoothly as never before, the higher the rev/acceleration, the smoother the engine sound. Damn, I love V6! All what the Nigerian mechanics and rewires couldnt fix, i was able to fix the issues with car by myself. Few weeks later i installed tghe Oxygen sensor. Last September, I was on annual Leave. I traveled/drove the car to East from Abuja to East. I left my house, at Area 1, at 6:30am and got to Lokoja few minutes before 8am. Less than 2 hrs drive! I was amazed .I refilled the fuel tank and continued on the Journey to Enugu. I arrived Enugu city exactly 1:30pm! This was a car that people had asked me to get rid of. This was a car Abuja Mechanics have advised that i convert it back to fuel carbureted I4 engine, since they couldnt fix it!  Few days later, i drove back to Abuja and got to Gwagwalada at 12:30pm on the dot! The car didnot even cough on the whole trip. I was doing 140 - 150kph on the whole trip. V6 is really an amazing engine! Even at low rev, when i was barely accelerating, at the 5th gear, it was doing 150kph, at full A/C on the whole trip!

Yes, am a living testimony to what Nigerian mechanics and rewires can do to cars. Am a living testimony  on how one can fix his or her car better than the mechanics, if the interest is there. Since the day i drove off from the workshop where my 505 slept for days without starting, no mechanic or rewire has ever touch my car, not even the bonnet again. Yes, there may be some tedious job that one may have to give them to do someday, but for me, it most be under my supervision and instruction. If he dosent like it, i find someone who does. Since the day i started working on my car, i have learnt a lot of things i couldnt have about cars. I use to blame myself for ending up with such a converted car, but now, i knew it was a blessing. If i had gotten a proper 505 V6, i wouldnt know much about fixing cars by now. V6 engine is a very simply technology. And also happens to be the most durable, when compared to I4,  Which was the reason why i purchased my 2nd car last month from Lagos: Peugeot 605 V6 5-speed manual. Though it can be thirsty when used in cities, but conserve fuel or consume less than I4 on high ways at high great speed.

At poster, take your time, you can fix your car issue.  Am happy that at least you can change oil and filter yourself. Its a good start. With time, you can know more than i do. It feels good when one diagnoses and fixes his car himself. You will also have the confidence to travel with your car to any part of the country anytime, knowing that you will never be stranded. That you can always fix it and continue your journey. You wont be at the mercy of the mechanics telling you what to do with your car, even if he is killing it.

Replacing ECU should be the last thing you should do. ECU works with signals it gets from sensors. If any of the sensors becomes faulty or have loose contact on the wiring connectors/plus, the ECU will be getting wrong signals and will start guess work and would wrongly command the injectors on amount of fuel to inject into the combustion chambers. Like Siena noted, you dont need to warm an EFI (Electronic Fuel Injection) engine before you drive off. The ECU has already been programmed. The amount of fuel that goes into the cylinders has been programmed as long as the sensors send correct signals to the ECU. You can drive your car to APO mechanic village, negotiate with an ECU seller there, swap the ECU in your car with his for sale. If it corrects the black smoke issue, you pay him for the ECU. If it doesnt correct the issue or you donot see any change, give him back his ECU. You can try with at least 4 ECUs of the same model or part number, if the first one doesnt work. At least, that will help you in elimiting ECU.

Final word. ITS YOUR CAR. OWN IT!

Attached is the pic of my 505 V6 5-speed manual.

shakers:
@poster- abeg carry your car go mechanic and forget all this longthings. Haba u no wan mk mechanic chop and u go buy tokumbo car. Lol just kidding
I like the experience u guys are sharing, I drive thesame kinda car but V4 and I don't even know where all these things you guys are talking about are located in d car.
And its going well just dat I changed my engine a month after I got the car. The one that came with it show me pepe for express rd lol

Mechanic! Hm! If you do not want that your newly purchased I4 engine to be sent to its early grave, you better start taking care of your car by yourself, at least, the basics. You never bothered to ask why that engine never died all the years it was driven in foreign land, only for it to give up as soon as Nigerian mechanics started to touch the engine. Anyway, goodluck with your faith in Nigerian mechanics. But dont come back to complain when eventually "they" kill the new engine, again.

Ikenna.

Mine is 08052811236.

Make sure you eliminate other things noted in earlier posts, while you are searching for the o2 sensor wiring connector. At what point did it start to emit black smoke, run very thirsty and sluggishly? Was it after you changed the oil recently/last week? Have you ever replaced the Cat converter? If it was after the oil change that the car started to run rich, then the mechanic that did the job should be the one that removed/unplugged the 02 sensor wiring connector and should tell you where he hid the connector in the engine bay. On the other hand, if the cat converter has been replaced before, it could be that the old/removed cat converter did not have 02 sensor. This is the more reason why you should have the wiring diagram by now. It tells and shows all the electrical components of the car, both their locations. But if the model of your Camry V6 should have 3 02 sensors and one of them on the cat converter, then the wiring connector, with the harness, is somewhere in that engine bay. Good luck.

Ikenna.

Oh! I forgot to add. Make sure all the vacuum lines/hoses or tubes on the engine bay are well clamped. If there is a vacuum leak, the AFM/MAF will detect the leak & signal the Injection ECU (Electronic Control Unit -aka brain Box, by Nigerians) to command Injectors to spray in/inject excess fuel into intake manifold to measure up the excess air coming in from the leaking vacuum lines. Dont rule out vacuum leak until you eliminate it.

But like i noted earlier, I dont know much about Toyota electrics, but Siena is the Guru we have here & would guild you more & better on how to fix your car for whatever problem, anytime. Iam where Iam now with cars because of him. Tap his knowledge like i did, when you have the opportunity

Ikenna.

If the O2 sensor is unplugged, then that would be the culprit or would be contributing. But why un earth would someone unplugged o2 sensor? If one knows the function of that sensor, unplugging it for the car to run without it is insane  If the sensor is faulty, then it should be replaced & not unplugged and left the engine, an EFI engine, to run without it.

o2 sensor fine tunes the air-fuel mixture in the intake maniflod & then the combustion chambers/cylinders. The injection ECU/PCM works with the signal it gets from the o2 & other sensors, to run the engine 100%. Once it stop getting signal or gets wrong signal from any of the sensors, it would start guessing & would command injectors to spray in excess fuel (rich mixture). That would result the black smoke you see from the exhaust tail.

I wouldnt know if Toyota uses universal Bosch 4-pin O2 sensor for their vehicles. At least, the Bosch Universal O2 is very much available in our auto markets, especially the Euro auto spare part shops. The universal sensor has 4 wires: 2 white wires, one black (signal wire to ECU) & grey color (earth or negative). The 2 white wires is for the heater part of the sensor (one of the wires is + feed from relay & the second white color is negative or earth). If you can run this connection, you will need to find the previous wires of that sensor. Besides, your car engine might have more than one O2 sensors. One could be on Catalytic converter, while the 2nd one would be on exhaust manifold, facing the radiator. You need to check to be sure.

Yes, i work or base in Abuja. I dont own a workshop. Am not an auto mechanic, nor a rewire. Am just a car owner like you. But i diagnose & fix my car by myself. Am the DIY type (Do it yoursely) maintenance. I gained the knowledge i have by ensuring PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE, which can 100% be possible if you start fixing your car as the owner of the car, like you service your babe or wife yourself

Anyway, I stay at Area 1, Garki. But you should know that am not into Japanese. Am not just a fan of their vehicles. So i may have limited knowledge about their cars electrical systems. You may have to get the wiring diagram of that car online, if you havent gotten.

Ikenna.

Black smoke! Excessive fuel? Na wahala o! Anyways, to add to what Siena had noted, faulty FPR (fuel pressure regulator) can also cause black smoke/excessive fueling. A car fuel pressure will drop when the FPR becomes faulty. You can check it with fuel pressure guage, if you have one. Or you can test the FPR by pulling out the vacuum hose on the FPR while the engine is running or idling. If you see fuel on the vacuum line coming out of the FPR where the vacuum hose is attached, that means the FPR has failed & it passing/supplying unrequierd fuel to the intake manifold via FPR vacuum line, thus, excessive fueling, resulting to black smoke.

Meanwhile, you also need to be sure that your fuel lines (both the supply & return line/pipe) under the car to the fuel tank, are still intact( hasnt been clogged, bent or blocked). Once the free flow of fuel on any of the lines is hindered, the fuel pressure will drop & the black smoke will result. Go under your car & check from the engine bay to fuel tank, to be sure that something didnot hit any of the fuel lines and bent it.

Most likely, things Siena listed are normally the culprit. But i would first start with cost free diagnosis, if i were you. Goodluck.

Ikenna

When you compare the two exteriors, Benz wins Beemer. But in the interior, Beemer wins. i wouldnt know about performance of the two since i havent driven any before. But the looks of Benz exterior can make one change mind about Beemer, i no go lie! Benz still get class pass Beemer somwhow

Ikenna.

The actual ( government approved) price for the new plate number is 15k (Fifteen thousand naira only). But for now, only few states was announced by the FRSC to have it.

Ikenna.

How could someone suggest A Camry XLE (Extral Luxury Edition) here when she has already given us her Budget of 500k? And not just a Camry, but V6 for that matter! For a first timer, who happens to be a lady? We have to be realistic when we are dealing with issues,  making suggestiions trying to help someone out. She is a first timer & a woman/lady for that matter. She is after a city car, which was why she was aiming at Golf 3, which I considered a good decision & good choice. She wants a car with better fuel economy in the city, not a thirsty car like a V6 when used in the city. Her budget also suggests what she can afford: a mid-sized car/city car, not a family sized car. We all know  how much they sell Toyota Camry & an XLE for that matter. Besides, cost of maintenance of V6 car is higher than an I4, both in terms of fueling & servicing. I know what it takes to keep a V6 car, on the road. Check my signature, I have or own two performance cars, V6s. So i fully know what am talking about. Servicing a car, you the Camary XLE V6 owner, dosent end with changing of oil & filters alone. Only God knows how many kilometers you have driven that car, without bothering to check if the timing belt is due for replacement. I can guess you are waiting for it to break before you replace it. The day that will happen to that your V6, if care is not taken, you will kiss bye bye to that engine. Trust me, not many Nigerian mechanics can deal with or fix a V6  with a broken timing belt. If you have driven upto 80,000 km & you havent replaced your timing belt, I pity you! Keep changing only engine oil until you learn the hard way how to fully service & maintain a car. Servicing a car dosent end with oil & filters changing alone. Their are components/parts that are meant to be replaced every after certain kilometers. Like Siena have noted, when it comes to replacing V6 timing belt in that compacted engine bay, you will grasp what it takes to maintain a V6, what it takes to keep a V6 on the road.

Of course, I will recommend a V6 to anyone, anyday, anytime. But not to someone after a city car, not to a lady who is a first timer. V6s cant be recommended to someone that intend to use a car solely for city driving or purpose. They consume more fuel than I4 when driven in the city, but consume lesser than I4 on high speed on highways. V6s are designed for highways, for quick acceleration, not for stop & go. She can only appreciate a V6 after she has used an I4 & decides to upgrade. I did not recommend a V6 to her because, at some point, a V6 owner would have to acquire tools & start diagnosing & fixing his/her car himself/herself, which a first timer, a lady, wouldnt want get involve with. Why i said this is because Nigerian rewires & mechanics are V6 killers. If one keeps allowing them to be thinking for them on what is wrong with their cars or diagnosing & fixing their cars, such cars will be grounded soon or send to their early graves. So to really keep a V6 on Nigerian road, as long as it takes, the owner will have to own his car & start dealing with it, to save himselves from nightmares.

V6 cars are much better than I4 to me. Am not sure of going back to I4. But i know who to recommend such cars to. Lady, if I were you, I would stick to the Golf 3. If you end up with another brand, no matter how reliable that brand serves you, you wont be happy. You would always wished that you had that your dream car instead of the one you ended up with & would always blame yourself for not trusting your instint. Thank God your choice is one of the best. A VW Golf 3, one of the most reliable, bullet-proofed & rugged Germain machine ever produced. Dont miss that dream!

Ikenna.

Pls, I believe the 500k should get her a tokunbo. It would be better for her to start with Tok, since she wants auto trans. But even if the 500k cant get her a tok, it should be able to get her Nigeria used one in top good/perfect condition, as clean as tok. She is a woman & may not know what to look out for when inspecting a Nigeria used car to purchase. It would be too bad to cheat a helpless person.

Woman, make sure everything in the car checks out ok before you make the purchase, if finally its only a Nigeria used Golf 3 that the 500k would get you.

Ikenna.